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>> The downing of a Syrian jet by the U.S. over the weekend provoking outrage from Moscow Monday, and threatening a deeper confrontation between the two military powers. Russia on Monday declaring it would now treat U.S. planes over over Syria as enemy craft, drawing a quick retort from the White House saying the U.S. reserved the right to its own self defense.

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The heated words erupting after the U.S. shot down the government jet near Raqqa on Sunday, saying it had dropped bombs near a group of U.S. backed forces. Damascus saying the downed plane was flying a mission against Islamic State. With the U.S. and Russia perusing sharply different aims in Syria and stepping up attacks, reporter Johnathan Landay says the risks between the two are growing.

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>> The United States has focused solely on going after Islamic State in Syria. And had had no kind of policy in terms of dealing with the fact that the Assad government intends to remain in power and appears to be intent, along with it's Russian backers, on recapturing all of the territory in Syria.

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Inevitably that means clashes with the U.S. backed rebels who are fighting Islamic State, as well as the United States which is protecting those rebels. The new tensions coming after the U.S. hit forces aligned with Bashar al-Assad at least twice in recent weeks. Top U.S. military commander, General Joe Dunford, on Monday said a special military communications channel between the U.S. and Russia in Syria was working as usual.

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>> So are you confident that U.S. forces won't be shot down?>> I'm confident that we are still communicating.>> But with little expectation of a quick end to the rising tensions.